Log or lumber car.



No. 873,685. PATENTED DEC. 10, 1 907. M. M. RUSSELL,

LOG OR LUMBER GAR.

APPLICATION I'ILED'IEB. 14, 19071.

TEL

W/TNESSES 2ZMz 1520mm?) CL/Ll, By

A TTOHNE S I STATES PATENT OFFIGE.

MILO MARTIN RUSSELL, OF EAU CLAIRE, WISCONSIN, ASSIGNOR OFONE-HALF TO ROY C.

BURGER, OF WINTER, WISCONSIN.

LOG OR LUMBER CAR.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Dec. 10, 1907.

Application filed February 14:- 1907. Serial No. 357.313.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, MrLo MARTIN RUssELL, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Eau Claire, in the county of Eau Claire and State of WVisconsin, have invented anew and Improved Log or Lumber (Jar, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description.

This invention relates to flat cars, and

while it is especially designed for conveying logs or lumber, is equally well adapted for other purposes. Such cars are commonly constructed with bunks extending transversely of the cars, and provided with vertical stakes for holding logs or lumber in position.

In constructions heretofore used it has been necessary to remove the stakes on the side where the logs or lumber are loaded,.and pile up the logs against the stakes on the opposite side of the car before placing the stake on the loading side, so as to avoid hoisting the logs over the tops of the stakes on the loading side. In loading in this manner the logs near the loading side must be held in some way from rolling off the car, and only a few logs can be placed upon the car without inserting the stakes on the loading side and hoisting the other logs over the tops of said stakes. lVith the exception of a very inconsiderable portion of the load all of the logs must therefore be hoisted over the tops of the stakes by the methods and means now employed. In some instances devices have been employed adapted to be operated from one side of the car, and so constructed that the stakes on one side of the car are released by a latch so as to enable the logs to be unloaded from that side. A car so constructed must be brought with the side having the detachable stakes opposite the place of unloading,-and this frequently requires considerable switching and consequent loss of time and power.

My invention has for its object, therefore, to overcome the foregoing difficulties and disadvantages and to provide means adapted to enable a car to be readily loaded with logs and to be unloaded from either side of the car, with a minimum expenditure of labor.

Such objects I accomplish by the means illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which drawings like characters of reference indicate like parts throughout the views, and in which Figure 1 is a side elevation of a car embodying my invention; Fig. 2 is an end view of the car shown in Fig. 1; Fig. 3 is a horizontal section taken on the line 33 of Fig. 2 Fig. 4 is a perspective view of a locking lever and Fig. 5 is an end view of a car similar to that shown in Fig. 1, showing a sectional stake consisting of a single beam.

As illustrated in the drawings, 1 represents the body of a car whichis mounted upon trucks 2 of ordinary construction. A series of bunks 3 are arranged transversely of the platform of the car adapted to support logs 4 above the platform 5 of the car. The bunks are provided with pockets 6 adapted to receive the lower end of stakes 7 These stakes are held in place in the pockets of the bunks by means of horizontal pins 8 which extend through the stakes and bear against the upper surface of the bunks, thereby forming a bearing for the stakes and preventing downward vertical displacement thereof in the bunks. The stakes are held against lateral displacement in the bunks by means of latches 9 attached to the opposite ends of each bunk, mounted upon hinge plates 1 1 by means of binge pins 10, and secured to the ends of the bunks so that the latches of each bunk are arranged in opposite relation to each other. The free ends of the latches 9 are provided with elongated slots 10 adapted to receive the ofi-set ends of locking levers 12, so arranged on opposite sides of the bunk as to enable one of the levers of each bunk to be operated from either side of the car. One end of the locking levers 12 is provided with operating handles 14 preferably provided with longitudinal slots 15 adapted to receive the. reduced ends 16 of the operating levers, which are pivotally attached to the slotted ends of the handles 14 by means of pivot pins 17. The locking levers are preferably provided with a reduced bearing 18 adapted to engage one of the straps 13 by means of which the locking levers are se- 100 cured to the bunks, thereby preventing longitudinal displacement of the locking levers on the bunks when the handles 14 are arranged in line with the body of the lever.

When the handles are arranged in line with 105 the levers, as indicated by dotted lines in Fig. 4, and shown by full lines in Fig. 3, the levers 12 may be readily rotated in their bearings so as to bring the off-set ends 11 in line with the slots 10 of the latches 9, there- 110 by enabling the latches 9 to be swung outward on their pivot 10 so as to release the stakes from engagement with the pockets of the bunks. When, however, the handles 14 are arranged at an angle to the body of the lever, as indicated in Fig. 2, the upper or free ends of the handles bear against the sides of the bunks, thereby preventing rotary motion of the levers in their bearings and keeping the off-set ends 11 of the levers in engagement with the latches of the bunk and hold ing the stakes securely in their pockets. The stakes may be of any desired construction and made of a single beam, as indicated by 19 in Fig. 5. I prefer, however, to construct the stakes in sections 7 and 7' with the overlapping ends of the stakes inclosed withina sleeve 22, as shown in Figs. 2 and. 5. By means of such construction the lower or stub sections of ,the stakes may be arranged in their pockets so that a considerable portion of the load may be arranged across the entire width of the car and against the opposite side thereof before the upper sections 7 of the stakes are placed in position, so as to require the remainder of the load to be hoisted over the tops of the stakes. A chain 23 is secured at one end to one of the stakes and its opposite end is preferably provided with a link 24 adapted to engage a slot 25 formed in the upper end of the opposite stake, so as to enable that end of the chain to be readily disconnected from its stake. The chain is placed in position after the car is loaded, and a few logs are then placed on top of the chain so as to more securely bind the chain and stakes together. The car is unloaded from either side by raising the handles 14 of the locking levers 12 on the opposite side of the car so as to bring the off-set ends 11 of the locking levers in line with the slots 10 of the keepers 9. When the parts are in such position the lateral pressure of the logs bearing against the lower ends of the stakes forces said ends outward, and the logs roll automatically onto the ground. Y

The construction of the device may be modified in many ways without departing from my invention, which consists essentially of transverse bunks provided with pockets adapted to receive stakes when used with looking and unlocking mechanism of the character herein shown and described. In the construction herein shown and described the bunks are constructed. of outer sections 3 having an inner central section 3 arranged between them to serve as a spacing block and form a strong recess in the ends of the bunk by making the central section 5 shorter than the end sections. If desired, however, the bunks may be made of a single section or of two sections, and of any material desired, such as wood or iron, and if made of iron may consist of a section of a railway rail and provided with pockets adapted to receive the stakes of a car, and with looking and unlocking devices having the capabilities herein shown and described.

It is obvious that without departing from my invention my device may be applied to the ends of the bunks on one side of a car only the ends of said bunks on the opposite side of the car having stakes of ordinary construction attached thereto. Nor is it essential to my invention to use a pivoted handle to unlock the latches which hold the stakes in the pockets of the bunks, other mechanism of any suitable construction may be used in lieu thereof without departing from my invention.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is: I

1. A railway car having a bunk provided with end pockets adapted to receive vertical stakes, latches hinged to the ends of said bunk and provided with elongated slots, locking levers rotatably mounted on the sides of said bunk and provided with off-set ends adapted to engage the slots of the latches, and with means for preventing rotary motion of said levers, substantially as shown and described.

2. A car having a bunk provided with end I pockets adapted to receive vertical stakes, latches hinged to the ends of said bunks and provided with elongated slots, locking levers rotatably mounted on said bunks and provided with off-set ends adapted to engage the slots of said latches, and with handles pivotally attached to said levers so as to form projecting ends adapted to bear against the sides of saidbunk,- and prevent rotary motion of said levers thereon, substantially as shown and described.

3. A car having a bunk provided with pockets, a stake secured to one of said pockets comprising a stub lower section, an upper section having a beveled lower end bearing against the end of the stub section, a sleeve engaging the overlapping ends of said sections, locking mechanism adapted to hold said stake in engagement with said bunk, and means for releasing said locking mechanism from engagement with said stake, substantially as shown and described.

4. A car having a bunk provided with a pocket adapted to receive a vertical stake, a slotted latch pivoted'to one end of said bunk, and a locking lever rotatably mounted on said bunk and provided at one end of the bunk with a handle and at the opposite end of the bunk with an offset keeper adapted to engage the slot of said latch, substantially as shown and described.

5. A car having a bunk provided with pockets adapted to receive vertical stakes, reversely arranged latches pivoted to the opposite ends of said bunk, and reversely arranged levers rotatably mounted. on said bunk, each provided at one end of the bunk I of the bunk and provided with an operating with an operating handle and at the opposite end of the bunk with a keeper, substantially as shown and described.

6. A car having a bunk provided with a pocket adapted to receive a vertical stake, a pivoted latch attached to one end of said bunk adapted to hold said stake in engagement with said pocket, and an operating lever rotatably mounted on said bunk, engaging-the free end of said latch at one end handle at the opposite end of said bunk,' substantially as shown and described.

In testimony whereof I have signed my 15 name to this specification in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

MILO MARTIN RUSSELL.

Witnesses:

OLUF HAUGEN,

K. RUSSELL. 

